


Camera Shy

by CharmsDealer



Category: Youtube RPF, youtube - Fandom
Genre: Camera Shy, F/M, Part Fluff, Piano Ghost, collab with Dan, filming youtube video, part serious, slight world building, third flat mate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-27
Updated: 2017-02-27
Packaged: 2018-09-27 06:48:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9981476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CharmsDealer/pseuds/CharmsDealer
Summary: You are the Third Flatmate, notoriously 'camera shy' and wary of appearing online in Dan's videos or social media.-Dan walks in on you filming a video and decides to sit in..





	

You are known for being wary of appearing on camera in any of Dan and Phil’s videos. It’s something that you avoided from the start. You didn’t want to get in their way, or presume that once you started living with them you would become an automatic part of their ‘YouTube’ lives. YouTube was their job, and you were just a temporary house guest helping to pay for rent. But when you and Dan gradually started dating, you felt more certain about your decision to stay away from the limelight.

There has been some casual interest from the fans about you, and some not-so-casual ‘interest’ that Dan doesn’t give the time of day to. In order to shut down the confusion he tweeted to confirm that he was ‘seeing someone’, but otherwise has not said much more about your relationship as he doesn’t talk about his personal life.

For a while, there were even a few fan theories that you didn’t really exist until Phil started covertly editing clips of your legs passing by the door (left ever so slightly ajar on purpose) and documenting ‘traces’ of their mysterious Third Flat Member in a ridiculous parody video titled “PROOF SHE EXISTS” that he filmed around Halloween and gave a paranormal theme to. Phil still likes to tease Dan about how ‘disgustingly in love’ he is ( _“Seriously, Y/N, what have you done to my friend?”)_ , andit’s become a game between them. Phil will bring you up casually and Dan will either pretend he doesn’t know what Phil is talking about, or he’ll retort with comments that range from the sappy  _“She walked straight out of my dreams,”_ complete with dopey smile and fluttering eyelashes,to the deadpan “Yeah, she lives in the basement with Doot” two-second shut-down.

Dan hasn’t ever given you the impression that he doesn’t want to talk about you or involve you in his life, but he picked up on your hesitation the few times he made casual references to potential DINOF ideas and you deflected or otherwise didn’t seem on board with them. He’s never pressured you about it and has taken it in stride that you’re just a bit ‘camera shy’.

Being frank, it’s not that you haven’t thought about helping Dan to script something about one of your worse dates for a DINOF video, and you sometimes wish that you hadn’t been so awkward about keeping your distance and maintaining such strict privacy. Part of the truth is that you’re wary of what might happen if or when you and Dan stop dating, or of being accused of using Dan’s fame to launch your own channel or otherwise get attention that you don’t ‘deserve’.

And yet here you are, sitting in front of the Gaming Computer.

You switch on the camera and stare into the dark, unforgiving lens. A warped reflection of your face blinks back. A full minute of silence passes as you stare at your reflection and wonder what you actually want to say, if this is something you actually might be interested in. There's no denying the fact that you're curious about how Dan feels when he's filming.

“H-Hello Internet,” you chirp, and immediately feel like face palming. You sound so  _fake_! This shouldn’t feel so awkward, should it? You’re completely alone, there’s nothing to prove, and you don’t have to keep anything you film. Theoretically this should be easier than talking to an actual person but it somehow feels like there’s a stadium full of people on the other side of the camera. How is this so different from talking on your phone?

A few more minutes trickle by as you open your mouth, ramble, and trail off in the middle of a sentence. Every time you look into the camera lens you’re left completely blank, your thoughts dissipating like mist. You laugh nervously and brush your hair behind your ear. Blink. Bite your lip. Deep breath. Come on, you’ve seen ‘Hello Internet’.

“Hi guys,” you begin again, “I’m feeling a bit nervous because this is something I don’t normally do, but if you watched Dan and Phil’s video ‘PROOF SHE EXISTS’,” you pause for dramatic effect, feeling yourself finally getting into it, “then you might know who I am already. Some have called me myth, and while I assure you that I am a legend,” time for an ‘inappropriate wink’ because  _fuck it_ , “I am The Third Flatmate,” you spread your hands in a “ta-dah” gesture, “This is She.

“I’ve been really nervous about getting involved publicly, but I’ve helped behind the scenes with a couple of videos, such as when Dan needed an extra pair of hands...”

You were referring to a video on Dan’s side channel in which he formally introduced you as ‘The Piano Ghost’, his ethereal girlfriend. He wrote an entire video about how he had finally started lessons again in order to sooth the restless spirit haunting his piano. As a condition of your cohabiting peacefully, he agreed to play the piano more regularly in exchange for you granting him powers over unseen forces...and becoming his ghostly mistress. At the end of the video you hand him a mug of tea from off-screen which he accepts with an air of casual entitlement, saying “Thanks, doll,” striking an obnoxiously smarmy pose. The outtro is a close-up shot of Dan’s fingers as he plays the piano, and the faint sound of your wordless singing melding with the melody.

Remembering the overall positive response from the fandom, you’re filled with gratitude.

“...I want to thank you guys for being so respectful and for being so welcoming. While I’ve been living here for nearly a year now, ‘me and Dan’ are still quite... new,” you look away from the camera, smiling shyly. “I was actually a fan of Dan’s before I moved in, so to be living here in the first place was... crazy. I felt like I’d won the lottery, but there were also lots of awkward moments and an adjustment period where I really had to calm down and think about whether this was actually going to work...”

You trail off again and stare at your lap. This was probably a good time to switch the camera off and delete the evidence. At least nobody caught you-

“- _Wait_ , _”_  

You twist around mid-motion, finger hovering above the button, and freeze. Please no. So awkward...

But yes, that is Dan in the doorway. He crosses the room in a few ridiculously long strides (bloody Giraffe) and bats your hand away from the camera before your brain has finished rebooting. “Phil and I leave the house for five minutes and what do I come home and find? Y/N filming a cheeky video.” He plonks himself down into the seat next to you.

“Hello Internet, I hope you’re being nice to our resident Ghost.” He puts his arm around your shoulders, looking at the camera steadily. He’s slipped into ‘performing’ as easily as breathing, a steady confidence built from hours of practice.

Dan is stupidly pretty all the time but he looks so full of triumph and satisfaction right now that he’s practically glowing, daring you to play along. Your eyes dart toward the camera nervously and you lick your lips. “It’s not them who you should be worried about,” you say, pretending that you’re not melting with warmth from where his arm is curled around you possessively, “I could be saying all sorts of defamatory things.”

“I doubt their opinion of me could get much lower, but you’re welcome to try. Just don’t go stealing all my subscribers.”

“It’s too late, Dan. There’s a new YouTuber in town.”

“I see, so this was your plan all along. To watch from the sidelines, to make me care for you...only to rise up against me. I feel so betrayed,” Dan says, sounding vaguely impressed.

“What’s worse is that I almost began to believe my own lie,” you sigh.

“Well, you know,” Dan purrs, leaning across his chair and into your space, “If you need any editing tips...”

You nod sharply. “Ask Phil. Got it.”

“- _Oy_!”

Your lips curl up at the corners in a tiny smile and you peck Dan on the cheek, “Kidding.”

“You’d better have been,” Dan grumbles. “SO, what have you really been up to? I didn’t think you were interested in ‘this sort of thing’.”

“I’m not,” you blurt, “I mean... This is actually really hard. Not that I thought it was easy, I just...” you shrug, “I just wanted to see what it felt like.”

“No, I get it,” Dan says, breaking character briefly, “Most of my DINOF videos are scripted so there’s quite a lot of preparation involved, but it definitely takes some getting used to, even when you do know what you want to say.”

“I think I can safely say it’s not something I’m going to make a habit of,” you say firmly, “And I’m not just saying that, I really don’t want to try and insert myself into what you and Phil do.”

Dan turns more fully toward you, frowning. “We never properly talked about it, so I let you take the lead on what you were comfortable with, but I don’t want to exclude you or make you feel like you aren’t welcome.”

“Gosh, no, I know that,” you try and explain, “I just don’t think I can do what you do. I’m not...entertaining. And I get really embarrassed easily about...well, most things.”

Dan considers your words. You watch his face, but sometimes you can’t quite tell from his expression what he’s feeling. Finally, he looks up. “Just because YouTube is my job, and admittedly a major part of my life, doesn’t mean you have to be involved with that side of things. It wouldn’t be an issue if you decided to sit in on a gaming video, those are pretty chill, and most collabs we do are pretty much just hanging out, give or take a loss of dignity.

You know me and Phil don't really do that many vlogs about our personal lives, and you don’t have to be anything but yourself. If you ever wanted to film something with us you could always try it, and if you change your mind it’s not that big of a deal to edit or scrap later. ” Dan swiped his hand across his forehead to fix his fringe. "I guess what I’m trying to say is that if  _you_ think it’s fun and something  _you_  want to do, I don’t want to scare you off, either."

“I’m cool with the way things are now,” you say, “I like helping with skits from a safe distance, and I kinda like my nickname. Makes me sound mysterious.”

Dan rolls his eyes. “Just be thankful you’re not permanently stuck with your fourteen-year-old internet name. No one will let it die.”

“Hey, I  _like_ your channel name! Personally, I don’t think I’d be able to pick such a good name, it's iconic. Besides, ‘TheGhostInHisPiano’ is too long and doesn’t look as good.”

“Eh, well, there’s time to plan that meteoric rise yet.” Dan tilts his head. “Will you remember me when you’re famous?”

You purse your lips. “...Absolutely.”

“You hesitated,” Dan says, narrowing his eyes playfully. You get up from your chair and sit down in his lap carefully, not wanting the chair to go flying out from underneath you both. Wheels. Dan continues to pretend to pout. You cup his face in your palms gently and tilt his head up.

“You’re seriously my favorite person in the entire universe, you know that, right?” you ask.

Dan's hands settle high on your waist, his thumbs lightly brushing the slight curve of where your breasts start. “I could do with some convincing right now.”

It’s your turn to smirk now. “Too bad, I’m hungry. Please order me a pizza,” you say loftily, skipping up from his lap.

“So demanding. And all those people out there think you’re some shy, delicate flower. If only they knew the truth.”

“...Maybe one day,” you say.

Dan’s eyes soften, “Looking forward to it.”

After you leave, Dan goes to stand up and notices that the camera is still recording. He puts his fingers to his lips in a 'shh' motion before pressing the button, and the video cuts out.

**Author's Note:**

> I thought of an idea out walking, a what-if 'You' purposefully kept yourself out of videos (belatedly realised that this could be inspired somewhat by ((John?)) Green's wife being referred to as 'the Yeti') and Dan stumbled upon you filming. I tried to stay faithful to my little inspiration flash of Dan being enthusiastic about making a collab with you, but then this became more serious than I originally intended. :S
> 
> Regardless, I hope you enjoyed reading! :D I'm obviously writing what I don't know as this is pure fantasy, but I have tried filming and part of this was also inspired by it feeling incredibly hecking awkward! Lemme know in the comments what worked or didn't as I would like to get better at delivering quality content ;)


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